Critical Edge Collective

Critical Edge Collective #5

May 2025, Handbag Factory Vauxhall

Blending sculpture, painting, print, and film, this exhibition from Critical Edge Collective explores alternative ways of engaging with Vauxhall’s cultural heritage, power, and physicality – both visible and invisible – and reflects on the notion of the factory. The exhibition was a collection of pieces created by 25 artists in response to their exploration, research and engagement with The Handbag Factory, its surrounding area and history, bringing together unique perspectives, new ideas and innovative approaches to their work.

Critical Edge Collective’s initial research into The Handbag Factory gallery did not uncover any evidence that it was historically a handbag factory. The space, in some ways, is defined by an inaccessibility and invisibility of origin and history. For this show, we sought to make a new industry of production: we asked that all participating artists find inspiration related to The Handbag Factory and contribute their research to a shared drive. As the show approached, we looked at each others’ investigations and used the breadth of information in the archive to each develop a new artwork. To emphasise the value of collaboration and dialogue, all participating artists shared their findings that informed their creative processes and the final pieces exhibited. Each artist has added to and helped build a research archive that is also displayed during the exhibition.

The exhibition was held from 22nd to 26th of May 2025 at the Handbag Factory Vauxhall, 3 Loughborough St, London SE11 5RB.

Through painting, past herstories, and recreating objects my Nanna Ann would have felt and touched, I have been exploring a combination of personal family archives alongside those of the Huntley & Palmers biscuit factory in Huyton, Liverpool. My focus is on my Nanna, Ann Hennigan, who worked on the conveyor belt at the factory during the 1960s–70s. I’ve been told she would joke that she was a “Computer Operator.” She worked the evening shift, 6–10pm—a pattern common among women at the time. Huntley & Palmers offered flexible shifts that allowed workers, especially women, to balance employment with school and family responsibilities. The company often favoured married couples and families, which provided women with a sense of independence, while also making it harder for entire families to take strike action.

My research offers insight into women’s experiences of labour and uncovers both personal and collective narratives of work, resilience, and identity. Through this, I aim to honour overlooked herstories and reimagine personal and industrial memory.